Saturday, July 9, 2011
'Caylee's Law' Petition Goes Viral, Bishop who knew but did not tell
also: Jailed teacher's abuse of primary pupils prompts serious case review
Probe ordered into how crimes went undiscovered after teacher Nigel Leat jailed indefinitely for years of sexual abuse
Jake Ormerod sentenced to 10 years in jail for sexually abusing girls -
Gang member used Facebook as part of a campaign to sexually abuse more than 100 schoolgirls in the Torbay area
'Caylee's Law' Petition Goes Viral, Aims To Make Not Reporting A Missing Child A Crime The Huffington Post Dean Praetorius 7/7/11
"Caylee's Law" has already gained over 330,000 signatures on Change.org.
The petition, which was created by Michelle Crowder of Oklahoma, aims to make not notifying police of a missing child a crime. According to USA Today, it also calls for strict penalties when parents do not quickly report the death of a child.
The call for the law comes in the wake of Tuesday's verdict in the Casey Anthony trial, in which the young mother did not report her child missing for some time.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/07/caylees-law-petition-casey-anthony_n_892317.html
In the dock: bishop who knew but did not tell - French abuse case stirs controversy over secrecy in Catholic Church
Special report: religion in the UK
Jon Henley in Paris
The Guardian, Thursday 14 June 2001 01.27 BST
A Roman Catholic bishop will appear in the dock today for the first time in modern French history, accused of knowingly covering up the crimes of a paedophile priest who had been telling his Church superiors of his sexual relations with young boys for more than 25 years.
Monsignor Pierre Pican, the bishop of Bayeux in Normandy, faces up to three years in jail in a landmark case that pits one of the essential tenets of Catholicism, the secrecy of the confessional, against the moral requirements of a secular justice system.
Mgr Pican will be asked to explain why he failed to report to the police the activities of Father René Bissey, sentenced to 18 years in jail last year for repeatedly raping one boy and sexually abusing 10 others between 1989 and 1996. A long list of similar offences dating back to 1970 had exceeded the statute of limitations.
Despite issuing an official condemnation of paedophilia, the Catholic church remains bitterly divided over the case, with some senior figures continuing to defend the vital importance of secrecy to their profession and the "curative role" of the confessional in their faith.
Mgr Pican was formally notified of Bissey's activities in 1996 by the vicar general of Normandy, Michel Marcel, who had received a letter from the mother of a young victim. He is alleged to have known of the priest's behaviour for far longer.
During his trial last October, Bissey - described by a police psychiatrist as an "authentic paedophile" who "felt no guilt whatsoever towards his victims" - said he had repeatedly admitted his activities with young boys to his confessors within the Church.
He had carried on, he told the court, because he was always pardoned....
The case eventually came to court only after one of the principal victims, Yann, then 25, filed a complaint against Bissey in mid-1999. Mgr Pican, 66, now faces charges of "failing to disclose the sexual abuse and maltreatment of minors below the age of 15 by a figure in authority".
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2001/jun/14/religion.uk
Jailed teacher's abuse of primary pupils prompts serious case review
Probe ordered into how crimes went undiscovered after teacher Nigel Leat jailed indefinitely for years of sexual abuse
Steven Morris
guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 14 June 2011
A review has been launched to establish if authorities could have acted sooner to prevent a primary school teacher sexually assaulting pupils as young as six, allegedly for more than a decade.
Nigel Leat was jailed indefinitely for abusing children he taught, often when other pupils were present, and secretly filming his attacks.
He groomed at least one girl a year at Hillside first school in Weston-super-Mare, Somerset and showered her with gifts, afforded her privileges and organised one-on-one teaching sessions.
Leat, 51, would swear his victims to secrecy and even write letters to them in which he would describe what he wanted to do to them and ask them to reply.
After the sentencing, North Somerset council revealed that the headteacher of Hillside, Chris Hood, had been suspended and an independent serious case review was being held....
Married father of two Leat, from Bristol, admitted 36 offences involving five pupils aged between six and eight over five years. The offences included sexual assault, attempted rape, voyeurism and possessing extreme pornography.
But police say they could have charged him with as many as 500 offences and believe he had been abusing children for 12 years.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jun/14/teacher-jailed-indefinitely-sexual-abuse
Jake Ormerod sentenced to 10 years in jail for sexually abusing girls -
Gang member used Facebook as part of a campaign to sexually abuse more than 100 schoolgirls in the Torbay area Steven Morris and Sandra Laville
guardian.co.uk, Friday 8 July 2011 A member of a gang believed to have sexually abused more than 100 schoolgirls in a seaside resort has been sentenced to 10 years in custody.
Jake Ormerod, 20, used Facebook as part of his "campaign to groom naive and immature girls" and then "mercilessly corrupted" them to satisfy his "insatiable need for sex". He admitted 13 charges of sexual activity with eight girls.
He plied victims with drink and drugs in the Devon resort of Torquay, before having unprotected sex.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/jul/08/jake-ormerod-10-years-jail-torbay
Friday, July 8, 2011
Casey Anthony family "dysfunctionality," West Point Day Care Ritual Abuse Case
also: Video of the documented CIA mind control history 1979
Jesse Grund, Casey Anthony's Ex-Fiance, Calls Family A 'Carnival Of Dysfunctionality' Casey Anthony's ex-fiance Jesse Grund calls the Anthony family a "carnival of dysfunctionality."
In an interview with NBC's Matt Lauer, Grund says he witnessed the dynamics between Casey, her parents, and her brother, and says that "there is no way Casey goes back home."
"There is no way they have any semblance of a normal family life," he says.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/06/jesse-grund-casey-anthony_n_891351.html
Video of the documented CIA mind control history 1979 http://www.brasschecktv.com/videos/government-corruption/control-freaks-sadists-and-thugs.html
permission to publish the article in full
West Point Day Care Sexual Abuse Case with Ritual Abuse allegations
Cunningham, Douglas and Alan Snel "A Legacy of Pain: Settlement Doesn't Ease Abused Children's Fears," The Times Herald Record (Middletown, New York), June 11, 1991.
The Times Herald-Record
Copyright (c) 1991, The Times Herald-Record
9106110008
Long : 227 lines
Tuesday, June 11, 1991
Final North News 4
By DOUGLAS CUNNINGHAM and ALAN SNEL Staff Writers
The Record photos: A new sign indicates a building number change. The red brick West Point Child Development Center was at the center of controversy in 1984. Mug photos: Judge W. Knapp William E. Crain Dr. Walter R. Grote
Record photo by Jeff Goulding: New center Director Nancy Campbell-Capen, above, talks about improvements to the building, including viewing windows in doors.
The Record photo: The West Point Child Development Center as it was in the mid-1980s, when the child abuse charges first surfaced. Back then, the building number was 666, leading to speculation that the abuse was satanically motivated.
A LEGACY OF PAIN SETTLEMENT DOESN'T EASE ABUSED CHILDREN'S FEARS
WEST POINT
Seven years have passed since she was sexually abused at West Point's child-care center. Yet today, the 10-year-old girl can't go to the bathroom without her mother waiting by the door.
The girl - who was 3 when West Point child-care workers were accused of sexually abusing her and 10 other children in 1984 - also asks her mother about whether she will be able to bear children when she grows up.
``This happened seven years ago, and it's not any better,'' the girl's mother said. ``She's constantly asking, `What if we're out in the store, Mommy, and we see these people? Are they going to hurt me?' . . . But this is constantly on her mind because she knows these people are not in jail for what they did.''
In the U.S. District Court files in Manhattan, the West Point sexual abuse case is resolved. The government failed in 1985 to indict any suspects in its criminal investigation. But last month, it settled a civil suit brought by the parents of the 11 victims. Nine of the victims will receive $2.7 million, with awards ranging from $25,000 to $625,000.
But even as the legal dust has settled, the case lingers as a legacy of pain for the families.
``These people stole our children,'' the mother said. ``(She's) nothing like she used to be. She's a very angry little girl. She doesn't trust anyone. She's nothing like she was before this happened.
``It's never going to be over for them, or for us.''
The case began in 1984, when allegations surfaced of sexual and physical abuse of children at the West Point Child Development Center.
The incidents unfolded against a backdrop of satanic acts, animal sacrifices and cult-like behavior among the abusers, whose activities extended beyond the U.S. Military Academy borders to Orange County and a military base in San Francisco, parents charged.
The specter of satanism would later spur U.S. Military Academy officials to change the West Point child-care center's building number from 666 to 673.
Despite 950 interviews by 60 FBI agents assigned to the investigation, an investigation led by former U.S. Attorney Rudolph Giuliani produced no federal grand jury indictments. The investigation did find ``significant indications that children may have been abused'' at the center.
Until now, no official reports or investigations have verified the sexual abuse. The Times Herald-Record, however, has learned that a still-secret, independent report - prepared by one of the nation's top experts on child sexual abuse - confirms the children's accusations of abuse. The report also played a vital role in ending the seven-year legal ordeal and in enabling the case to be settled without the children undergoing potentially hostile questioning on the witness stand, said U.S. District Judge Whitman Knapp, who heard the civil case.
The expert, Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess, a professor of psychiatric nursing at the University of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia and the author of the book, ``Child Pornography and Sex Rings,'' entered the case in 1989.
She interviewed all the children. She said yesterday that her goal in the case had been to reduce harm to the children because testimony in open court could have triggered symptoms of abuse, prompted by a ``resurfacing'' of the original incident.
Knapp said that because Burgess worked for neither the government nor the plaintiffs, but reported directly to the court, her findings carried additional credibility. Neither Burgess nor others would speak about her specific findings.
``You can draw your own conclusions from the fact that (the government) paid all this money,'' Knapp said about Burgess' report. ``The government wouldn't have likely paid that money unless the report gave them a basis for doing that.''
The families' lawyer, William E. Crain, who now practices in Elkin, N.C., and formerly worked in Newburgh, said the report is independent confirmation of the children's claims. He received nearly $300,000 in legal fees in the case. The amount, 25 percent of the settlement, is set by law.
``Just generally speaking, it corroborated the children's allegations they had been sexually abused by day-care center staff,'' Crain said of the report.
``That report was sealed and has never been seen by anybody else and I hope it never will be,'' Knapp said. ``That has all the intimate details of what happened to these children. Certainly, they don't want to be plagued by that when they grow up.''
The government, however, admitted none of the allegations in making the settlement. Edward T. Ferguson III, the assistant U.S. attorney in charge of the case, declined to comment on Burgess' role. He said that the settlement was in the best interests of the children and did not require them to testify in court.
``Everyone involved - the parents, the government and the court - all wished to avoid (the children taking the witness stand), if an accommodation could be reached,'' Ferguson said.
Among other things, several of the settlements - made individually with each child's family - provide for medical costs, counseling and a college fund. The actual cost of the settlement is $1.175 million. Much of the money will be invested and paid out during the victims' lives, thereby increasing the total to $2.7 million.
``They're children. They're going to have to live with what happened to them. So are their parents,'' Crain said. ``But in terms of legal work, the legal end of it is finished.''
Nancy Campbell-Capen's job began just four months ago. West Point hired the New Jersey native to run its child-care program, including the center, a red-brick building tucked on a hill between playing fields and a playground.
Ms. Campbell-Capen recalled talking about the sexual abuse case with her boss and other center staffers.
``More people were reacting to the media coverage than the actual possible event,'' Ms. Campbell-Capen said she was told.
The center serves 150 children - 80 percent from military families and 20 percent from civilian workers. There are 120 children on a waiting list for the center that now complies with federal guidelines, which were strengthened in 1989.
``They certainly tightened the old regulations,'' said Ms. Campbell-Capen, who ran child-care centers at Army bases in Germany. ``We discovered the need to tighten up with staff training.''
Only a handful of the center's 86 workers remain from the 1984 staff. Ms. Campbell-Capen said the staff had no response to the lawsuit settlement.
The center is trying to receive accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
The center's dedication to meeting child-care standards contrasts with the way victims' parents were treated when they sought to alert West Point and the military that their children had been sexually violated.
The Army's reaction to the parents' plight so enraged former Army Dr. Walter R. Grote that the ex-captain refused a promotion to major in 1985 because of the treatment of his child's sexual abuse case at West Point. He was one of the first parents to file the lawsuit, but later dropped out of seeking money from the case.
``Unfortunately, money can't . . . undo the trauma incurred by scores of children at West Point . . . because people with responsibility didn't exercise that responsibility,'' said Grote, now in private practice in New Jersey. ``What the hell is a settlement? . . . They could have caught these people doing it at the time that they were doing it.
``We have a tendency to think that everything that's evil and bad is on the other side of the Pacific or the Atlantic.
``And that's not the case.''
The mother of the 10-year-old said the settlement will pay her daughter's college bills. But the mother said she would have preferred the government kept its money and punished the abusers.
Without the prosecution, West Point has retained its polished national image, she said. Even last month, the government admitted none of the allegations in making the settlement, a reminder of what parents say was West Point's callous denial.
``They wouldn't acknowledge what happened,'' the mother said. ``I'm sure if it was done anywhere else but West Point, it would have been acknowledged.''
Another parent whose son was sexually abused recalled that the Army was not prepared to treat satanic abuse.
``You had a bunch of kids who had some kind of abuse and the concerns of the parents seeking assistance fell on deaf ears. The medical treatment for the satanic abuse was not meeting the bill. It was far beyond what (the Army) could handle,'' said Maj. Bob Caslen, an infantry officer reached stationed at Fort Campbell, Ky.
Two teacher aides were suspended and later quit after the charges surfaced.
After a federal grand jury failed to return indictments, community members joined the parents in calling for another investigation in 1985.
Joan Benedict walked with parents at a protest in Highland Falls in hopes of inspiring another probe. And she was a member of an Orange County anti-pornography group that sponsored a forum to allow the victims' parents to speak out in 1986.
Ms. Benedict said she used to pray and walk at West Point because of the 189-year-old institution's majestic Hudson River views. But no more.
``When I saw the headlines of the child pornography ring at West Point, it cut me to the heart,'' Ms. Benedict said. ``I know West Point is only surface beauty. They were outright cruel to the parents.''<
Ms. Benedict, a Town of Cornwall resident, started her own crusade to spark the Justice Department to reopen the abuse case. She ended her efforts in 1988 when she was convinced of a federal cover-up after receiving a letter from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Mary C. Spearing, a special attorney with the Justice Department's National Obscenity Enforcement Unit, wrote that the case was closed.
``Unfortunately, no new evidence, revelation or hint of wrongdoing or negligence surfaced during our review,'' she wrote. She noted in her letter that the assistant U.S. attorney on the case was a father of four and that she had two children herself.
The monetary settlement, however, did not resolve the parents' bitterness over what they still maintain was a botched FBI investigation. In fact, court papers filed by parents showed federal investigators not only refused to believe the children, but, in some cases, also criticized some parents for not keeping their children under control in their homes.
``When the agents came to the house, they did not appear to have a tape recorder and they were not taking notes during the interview,'' one parent said in a sworn statement, according to 1984 court papers. ``He became annoyed and frustrated and said, `It looks like she's just trying to get attention.' ''
Recalled Grote: ``The tragedy is the abusers could have been caught . . . with a little imagination and a lot less chauvinistic narcissism on the part of West Point and the initial FBI investigator.''
Prosecutor Giuliani did not return calls last week. In 1987, Giuliani said his detailed investigation showed only one or two children were abused. The federal investigation cleared the center staff members accused by the children.
The mother of the 10-year-old girl still tries to cope with the abuse's aftermath.
``As far as I'm concerned, the government gave them a license to go out and abuse other children,'' the mother said. ``I have to explain to my daughter these people are still out there.
``And she still has nightmares. She's afraid they're going to come through the window at night to get her.''
Center changes
Despite sexual abuse charges that surfaced in 1984 and a $1 million renovation of the building, the West Point day-care center was hit with 79 violations in January 1988. Here are some of the violations found by the 14-member Pentagon task force and how they have been resolved:
- Doors lacked windows. According to inspectors, this ``increases the potential for child abuse.'' All center doors now have windows.
- No background checks. The names of the 22 child-care providers were not submitted to the Army Central Registry to determine whether they had prior criminal records. All employees now have background checks done.
- Unprotected electrical outlets. All outlets now have protective caps.
- Toilets not immediately adjacent to activity areas. Restrooms have been renovated and child-size toilets have been installed.
- Some workers, from the center's acting director to receptionists, did not receive proper training. Training has begun.
An Army Child Care Evaluation team spent a week in August scrutinizing the center and did not list any infractions, said Ray Aalbue, a West Point spokesman.
Jesse Grund, Casey Anthony's Ex-Fiance, Calls Family A 'Carnival Of Dysfunctionality' Casey Anthony's ex-fiance Jesse Grund calls the Anthony family a "carnival of dysfunctionality."
In an interview with NBC's Matt Lauer, Grund says he witnessed the dynamics between Casey, her parents, and her brother, and says that "there is no way Casey goes back home."
"There is no way they have any semblance of a normal family life," he says.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/06/jesse-grund-casey-anthony_n_891351.html
Video of the documented CIA mind control history 1979 http://www.brasschecktv.com/videos/government-corruption/control-freaks-sadists-and-thugs.html
permission to publish the article in full
West Point Day Care Sexual Abuse Case with Ritual Abuse allegations
Cunningham, Douglas and Alan Snel "A Legacy of Pain: Settlement Doesn't Ease Abused Children's Fears," The Times Herald Record (Middletown, New York), June 11, 1991.
The Times Herald-Record
Copyright (c) 1991, The Times Herald-Record
9106110008
Long : 227 lines
Tuesday, June 11, 1991
Final North News 4
By DOUGLAS CUNNINGHAM and ALAN SNEL Staff Writers
The Record photos: A new sign indicates a building number change. The red brick West Point Child Development Center was at the center of controversy in 1984. Mug photos: Judge W. Knapp William E. Crain Dr. Walter R. Grote
Record photo by Jeff Goulding: New center Director Nancy Campbell-Capen, above, talks about improvements to the building, including viewing windows in doors.
The Record photo: The West Point Child Development Center as it was in the mid-1980s, when the child abuse charges first surfaced. Back then, the building number was 666, leading to speculation that the abuse was satanically motivated.
A LEGACY OF PAIN SETTLEMENT DOESN'T EASE ABUSED CHILDREN'S FEARS
WEST POINT
Seven years have passed since she was sexually abused at West Point's child-care center. Yet today, the 10-year-old girl can't go to the bathroom without her mother waiting by the door.
The girl - who was 3 when West Point child-care workers were accused of sexually abusing her and 10 other children in 1984 - also asks her mother about whether she will be able to bear children when she grows up.
``This happened seven years ago, and it's not any better,'' the girl's mother said. ``She's constantly asking, `What if we're out in the store, Mommy, and we see these people? Are they going to hurt me?' . . . But this is constantly on her mind because she knows these people are not in jail for what they did.''
In the U.S. District Court files in Manhattan, the West Point sexual abuse case is resolved. The government failed in 1985 to indict any suspects in its criminal investigation. But last month, it settled a civil suit brought by the parents of the 11 victims. Nine of the victims will receive $2.7 million, with awards ranging from $25,000 to $625,000.
But even as the legal dust has settled, the case lingers as a legacy of pain for the families.
``These people stole our children,'' the mother said. ``(She's) nothing like she used to be. She's a very angry little girl. She doesn't trust anyone. She's nothing like she was before this happened.
``It's never going to be over for them, or for us.''
The case began in 1984, when allegations surfaced of sexual and physical abuse of children at the West Point Child Development Center.
The incidents unfolded against a backdrop of satanic acts, animal sacrifices and cult-like behavior among the abusers, whose activities extended beyond the U.S. Military Academy borders to Orange County and a military base in San Francisco, parents charged.
The specter of satanism would later spur U.S. Military Academy officials to change the West Point child-care center's building number from 666 to 673.
Despite 950 interviews by 60 FBI agents assigned to the investigation, an investigation led by former U.S. Attorney Rudolph Giuliani produced no federal grand jury indictments. The investigation did find ``significant indications that children may have been abused'' at the center.
Until now, no official reports or investigations have verified the sexual abuse. The Times Herald-Record, however, has learned that a still-secret, independent report - prepared by one of the nation's top experts on child sexual abuse - confirms the children's accusations of abuse. The report also played a vital role in ending the seven-year legal ordeal and in enabling the case to be settled without the children undergoing potentially hostile questioning on the witness stand, said U.S. District Judge Whitman Knapp, who heard the civil case.
The expert, Dr. Ann Wolbert Burgess, a professor of psychiatric nursing at the University of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia and the author of the book, ``Child Pornography and Sex Rings,'' entered the case in 1989.
She interviewed all the children. She said yesterday that her goal in the case had been to reduce harm to the children because testimony in open court could have triggered symptoms of abuse, prompted by a ``resurfacing'' of the original incident.
Knapp said that because Burgess worked for neither the government nor the plaintiffs, but reported directly to the court, her findings carried additional credibility. Neither Burgess nor others would speak about her specific findings.
``You can draw your own conclusions from the fact that (the government) paid all this money,'' Knapp said about Burgess' report. ``The government wouldn't have likely paid that money unless the report gave them a basis for doing that.''
The families' lawyer, William E. Crain, who now practices in Elkin, N.C., and formerly worked in Newburgh, said the report is independent confirmation of the children's claims. He received nearly $300,000 in legal fees in the case. The amount, 25 percent of the settlement, is set by law.
``Just generally speaking, it corroborated the children's allegations they had been sexually abused by day-care center staff,'' Crain said of the report.
``That report was sealed and has never been seen by anybody else and I hope it never will be,'' Knapp said. ``That has all the intimate details of what happened to these children. Certainly, they don't want to be plagued by that when they grow up.''
The government, however, admitted none of the allegations in making the settlement. Edward T. Ferguson III, the assistant U.S. attorney in charge of the case, declined to comment on Burgess' role. He said that the settlement was in the best interests of the children and did not require them to testify in court.
``Everyone involved - the parents, the government and the court - all wished to avoid (the children taking the witness stand), if an accommodation could be reached,'' Ferguson said.
Among other things, several of the settlements - made individually with each child's family - provide for medical costs, counseling and a college fund. The actual cost of the settlement is $1.175 million. Much of the money will be invested and paid out during the victims' lives, thereby increasing the total to $2.7 million.
``They're children. They're going to have to live with what happened to them. So are their parents,'' Crain said. ``But in terms of legal work, the legal end of it is finished.''
Nancy Campbell-Capen's job began just four months ago. West Point hired the New Jersey native to run its child-care program, including the center, a red-brick building tucked on a hill between playing fields and a playground.
Ms. Campbell-Capen recalled talking about the sexual abuse case with her boss and other center staffers.
``More people were reacting to the media coverage than the actual possible event,'' Ms. Campbell-Capen said she was told.
The center serves 150 children - 80 percent from military families and 20 percent from civilian workers. There are 120 children on a waiting list for the center that now complies with federal guidelines, which were strengthened in 1989.
``They certainly tightened the old regulations,'' said Ms. Campbell-Capen, who ran child-care centers at Army bases in Germany. ``We discovered the need to tighten up with staff training.''
Only a handful of the center's 86 workers remain from the 1984 staff. Ms. Campbell-Capen said the staff had no response to the lawsuit settlement.
The center is trying to receive accreditation from the National Association for the Education of Young Children.
The center's dedication to meeting child-care standards contrasts with the way victims' parents were treated when they sought to alert West Point and the military that their children had been sexually violated.
The Army's reaction to the parents' plight so enraged former Army Dr. Walter R. Grote that the ex-captain refused a promotion to major in 1985 because of the treatment of his child's sexual abuse case at West Point. He was one of the first parents to file the lawsuit, but later dropped out of seeking money from the case.
``Unfortunately, money can't . . . undo the trauma incurred by scores of children at West Point . . . because people with responsibility didn't exercise that responsibility,'' said Grote, now in private practice in New Jersey. ``What the hell is a settlement? . . . They could have caught these people doing it at the time that they were doing it.
``We have a tendency to think that everything that's evil and bad is on the other side of the Pacific or the Atlantic.
``And that's not the case.''
The mother of the 10-year-old said the settlement will pay her daughter's college bills. But the mother said she would have preferred the government kept its money and punished the abusers.
Without the prosecution, West Point has retained its polished national image, she said. Even last month, the government admitted none of the allegations in making the settlement, a reminder of what parents say was West Point's callous denial.
``They wouldn't acknowledge what happened,'' the mother said. ``I'm sure if it was done anywhere else but West Point, it would have been acknowledged.''
Another parent whose son was sexually abused recalled that the Army was not prepared to treat satanic abuse.
``You had a bunch of kids who had some kind of abuse and the concerns of the parents seeking assistance fell on deaf ears. The medical treatment for the satanic abuse was not meeting the bill. It was far beyond what (the Army) could handle,'' said Maj. Bob Caslen, an infantry officer reached stationed at Fort Campbell, Ky.
Two teacher aides were suspended and later quit after the charges surfaced.
After a federal grand jury failed to return indictments, community members joined the parents in calling for another investigation in 1985.
Joan Benedict walked with parents at a protest in Highland Falls in hopes of inspiring another probe. And she was a member of an Orange County anti-pornography group that sponsored a forum to allow the victims' parents to speak out in 1986.
Ms. Benedict said she used to pray and walk at West Point because of the 189-year-old institution's majestic Hudson River views. But no more.
``When I saw the headlines of the child pornography ring at West Point, it cut me to the heart,'' Ms. Benedict said. ``I know West Point is only surface beauty. They were outright cruel to the parents.''<
Ms. Benedict, a Town of Cornwall resident, started her own crusade to spark the Justice Department to reopen the abuse case. She ended her efforts in 1988 when she was convinced of a federal cover-up after receiving a letter from the U.S. Department of Justice.
Mary C. Spearing, a special attorney with the Justice Department's National Obscenity Enforcement Unit, wrote that the case was closed.
``Unfortunately, no new evidence, revelation or hint of wrongdoing or negligence surfaced during our review,'' she wrote. She noted in her letter that the assistant U.S. attorney on the case was a father of four and that she had two children herself.
The monetary settlement, however, did not resolve the parents' bitterness over what they still maintain was a botched FBI investigation. In fact, court papers filed by parents showed federal investigators not only refused to believe the children, but, in some cases, also criticized some parents for not keeping their children under control in their homes.
``When the agents came to the house, they did not appear to have a tape recorder and they were not taking notes during the interview,'' one parent said in a sworn statement, according to 1984 court papers. ``He became annoyed and frustrated and said, `It looks like she's just trying to get attention.' ''
Recalled Grote: ``The tragedy is the abusers could have been caught . . . with a little imagination and a lot less chauvinistic narcissism on the part of West Point and the initial FBI investigator.''
Prosecutor Giuliani did not return calls last week. In 1987, Giuliani said his detailed investigation showed only one or two children were abused. The federal investigation cleared the center staff members accused by the children.
The mother of the 10-year-old girl still tries to cope with the abuse's aftermath.
``As far as I'm concerned, the government gave them a license to go out and abuse other children,'' the mother said. ``I have to explain to my daughter these people are still out there.
``And she still has nightmares. She's afraid they're going to come through the window at night to get her.''
Center changes
Despite sexual abuse charges that surfaced in 1984 and a $1 million renovation of the building, the West Point day-care center was hit with 79 violations in January 1988. Here are some of the violations found by the 14-member Pentagon task force and how they have been resolved:
- Doors lacked windows. According to inspectors, this ``increases the potential for child abuse.'' All center doors now have windows.
- No background checks. The names of the 22 child-care providers were not submitted to the Army Central Registry to determine whether they had prior criminal records. All employees now have background checks done.
- Unprotected electrical outlets. All outlets now have protective caps.
- Toilets not immediately adjacent to activity areas. Restrooms have been renovated and child-size toilets have been installed.
- Some workers, from the center's acting director to receptionists, did not receive proper training. Training has begun.
An Army Child Care Evaluation team spent a week in August scrutinizing the center and did not list any infractions, said Ray Aalbue, a West Point spokesman.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Will the Casey Anthony Case Bring Awareness to Other Child Abuse Cases?
also: Risk Factors Predict Repeat Abuse
Child abuse expert: Casey Anthony cases don't help
by Sandra Haros/KTAR July 6th, 2011
PHOENIX
Child abuse in America is at an all-time high and cases like the Casey Anthony trial in Florida don't really help curb the problem, according to Robert Bell with Childhelp.
"Five children die each day and that should alarm us as a society," said Bell. "Unfortunately, I don't believe most people actually know that."
He said the numbers on child abuse are shocking -- that a new report is filed every 10 seconds.
"In Arizona, in 2009, we had 33,000 reports to Child Protective Services involving more than 45,000 children."
Of those, Bell said 64 children died at the hands of abusers....
Bell said cases like the Anthony trial do little to stop abuse, but instead sensationalize it.
"We can become desensitized as a country or, a better way to put it is we can be lulled into thinking that the problem isn't as pervasive as it actually is," he said.
http://ktar.com/category/local-news-articles/20110706/Child-abuse-expert:-Casey-Anthony-cases-don%27t-help/
Will the Casey Anthony Case Bring Awareness to Other Child Abuse Cases?
The words "not guilty" did not sit well with many people. Those who have been following the Casey Anthony trial from the beginning don’t believe she should have gotten off so easily. Jul 5, 2011 Deanna Bettineschi
....Child abuse cases that end in death are the ones that usually get the most attention...but there are plenty of local cases that happen in the wiregrass that don’t get noticed at all.
"These high profile cases do bring a lot of media attention to cases however, last year in Dothan, Houston...Henry County, in the wiregrass area we had three hundred and sixty eight cases of child sexual abuse. “says Child Advocacy Center Executive Director Sherryl Walker.
Many of these children suffer in silence, and don’t have anybody to speak up for them.
"There’s no winners...even when children are abused and they live, they have to live with the scars forever" says Walker.
Walker hopes the Casey Anthony case will bring public awareness to child abuse problems across the nation
http://www.wtvy.com/home/headlines/Will_the_Casey_Anthony_Case_Bring_Awareness_to_Other_Child_Abuse_Cases_125046209.html
Risk Factors Predict Repeat Abuse By Nancy Walsh, Staff Writer, MedPage Today July 05, 2011
When child abuse has been substantiated, a number of risk factors can predict the likelihood that abuse will be repeated if the child is returned to the care of the abuser, according to a prospective cohort study.
For instance, when the parents or caregivers were in their teens or twenties, were survivors of abuse, and had never taken parenting classes -- the child faced a 54% risk of being harmed again, wrote Suzanne R. Dakil, MD, and colleagues from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. But the risk was higher even higher -- 60% -- for children younger than 8.5 years who were returned to parents that had taken parenting class, the researchers reported online in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine....
A total of 44% of children in the sample were reported to child welfare authorities again after the index report. Bivariate analysis determined that these repeated reports were more likely when the child was between 3 years and 10 years of age and had behavior disturbances or developmental delays.
A new report also was more likely if caregivers were younger, had themselves been abused, and were limited in their employment because of health or emotional problems. A family factor associated with repeated report was income below $20,000, while active domestic violence was less likely. The finding of lower risk in the presence of domestic violence may be explained by the possibility that children in such homes are more likely to be removed or to be provided with closer support and monitoring, according to the researchers....
Among the 1,252 substantiated index cases, 38% involved a second report. However, this rose to 86% when the caregiver had a history of abuse and was younger than 33.5 years, the child was younger than 12.5 years but showed no behavioral difficulties, and when five or more children were present in the home. A cluster of characteristics associated with low incidence of repeated abuse -- 26% -- was a substantiated index report, older age of the caregiver, no parenting classes, and non-African-American race....
The finding that risk was still high in cases where there had been parenting classes suggests that classes may not be adequate for high-risk families, and additional support or removal might be considered, they noted. And the increased risk seen with low income and behavior difficulties signals a need for assistance in basics such as housing, employment, medical care, and behavioral services. Primary source: Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine - Source
reference:
Dakil S, et al "Recidivism in the child protection system: identifying children at greatest risk of reabuse among those remaining" Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 2011; DOI:10.1001/archpediatrics.2011.129.
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/DomesticViolence/27417
Child abuse expert: Casey Anthony cases don't help
by Sandra Haros/KTAR July 6th, 2011
PHOENIX
Child abuse in America is at an all-time high and cases like the Casey Anthony trial in Florida don't really help curb the problem, according to Robert Bell with Childhelp.
"Five children die each day and that should alarm us as a society," said Bell. "Unfortunately, I don't believe most people actually know that."
He said the numbers on child abuse are shocking -- that a new report is filed every 10 seconds.
"In Arizona, in 2009, we had 33,000 reports to Child Protective Services involving more than 45,000 children."
Of those, Bell said 64 children died at the hands of abusers....
Bell said cases like the Anthony trial do little to stop abuse, but instead sensationalize it.
"We can become desensitized as a country or, a better way to put it is we can be lulled into thinking that the problem isn't as pervasive as it actually is," he said.
http://ktar.com/category/local-news-articles/20110706/Child-abuse-expert:-Casey-Anthony-cases-don%27t-help/
Will the Casey Anthony Case Bring Awareness to Other Child Abuse Cases?
The words "not guilty" did not sit well with many people. Those who have been following the Casey Anthony trial from the beginning don’t believe she should have gotten off so easily. Jul 5, 2011 Deanna Bettineschi
....Child abuse cases that end in death are the ones that usually get the most attention...but there are plenty of local cases that happen in the wiregrass that don’t get noticed at all.
"These high profile cases do bring a lot of media attention to cases however, last year in Dothan, Houston...Henry County, in the wiregrass area we had three hundred and sixty eight cases of child sexual abuse. “says Child Advocacy Center Executive Director Sherryl Walker.
Many of these children suffer in silence, and don’t have anybody to speak up for them.
"There’s no winners...even when children are abused and they live, they have to live with the scars forever" says Walker.
Walker hopes the Casey Anthony case will bring public awareness to child abuse problems across the nation
http://www.wtvy.com/home/headlines/Will_the_Casey_Anthony_Case_Bring_Awareness_to_Other_Child_Abuse_Cases_125046209.html
Risk Factors Predict Repeat Abuse By Nancy Walsh, Staff Writer, MedPage Today July 05, 2011
When child abuse has been substantiated, a number of risk factors can predict the likelihood that abuse will be repeated if the child is returned to the care of the abuser, according to a prospective cohort study.
For instance, when the parents or caregivers were in their teens or twenties, were survivors of abuse, and had never taken parenting classes -- the child faced a 54% risk of being harmed again, wrote Suzanne R. Dakil, MD, and colleagues from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. But the risk was higher even higher -- 60% -- for children younger than 8.5 years who were returned to parents that had taken parenting class, the researchers reported online in the Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine....
A total of 44% of children in the sample were reported to child welfare authorities again after the index report. Bivariate analysis determined that these repeated reports were more likely when the child was between 3 years and 10 years of age and had behavior disturbances or developmental delays.
A new report also was more likely if caregivers were younger, had themselves been abused, and were limited in their employment because of health or emotional problems. A family factor associated with repeated report was income below $20,000, while active domestic violence was less likely. The finding of lower risk in the presence of domestic violence may be explained by the possibility that children in such homes are more likely to be removed or to be provided with closer support and monitoring, according to the researchers....
Among the 1,252 substantiated index cases, 38% involved a second report. However, this rose to 86% when the caregiver had a history of abuse and was younger than 33.5 years, the child was younger than 12.5 years but showed no behavioral difficulties, and when five or more children were present in the home. A cluster of characteristics associated with low incidence of repeated abuse -- 26% -- was a substantiated index report, older age of the caregiver, no parenting classes, and non-African-American race....
The finding that risk was still high in cases where there had been parenting classes suggests that classes may not be adequate for high-risk families, and additional support or removal might be considered, they noted. And the increased risk seen with low income and behavior difficulties signals a need for assistance in basics such as housing, employment, medical care, and behavioral services. Primary source: Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine - Source
reference:
Dakil S, et al "Recidivism in the child protection system: identifying children at greatest risk of reabuse among those remaining" Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 2011; DOI:10.1001/archpediatrics.2011.129.
http://www.medpagetoday.com/Pediatrics/DomesticViolence/27417
Wednesday, July 6, 2011
Casey Anthony case - Child Abuse Connection? Casey Anthony: Judgment day
Casey Anthony: Judgment day
July 5, 2011
(CBS News) ORLANDO, Fla.
It began three years ago with a mystery that turned into an unthinkable crime. A community outraged, a family torn apart, and a nation's attention focused on one woman. After 91 witnesses and 30 days of testimony - stunning revelations, a family accused, disturbing evidence and even more disturbing behavior - finally a shocking verdict....
On July 5, 2011, Casey Anthony was acquitted of murder, acquitted of manslaughter and acquitted of child abuse.
She was convicted only of four misdemeanors: All of them about lying to investigators....
In his opening argument, attorney Baez said Casey had a reason to lie about Caylee's whereabouts. And for the first time in public, he revealed it.
"She never was missing. Caylee Anthony died on June 16, 2008, when she drowned in her family's swimming pool," Baez told the court in his opening statements.
That awful event, Baez said, overwhelmed this deeply disturbed young mother - a woman who had learned to keep secrets because she had been sexually abused by her own father from an early age.
"It all began when Casey was 8 years old and her father came into her room and began to touch her inappropriately. And it escalated. And it escalated," Baez continued....
Baez accused George Anthony of being the real villain in this case - a brutal man who intimidated his daughter for years. Baez told jurors that George found Caylee in the pool that day and then Casey found him holding the body of her lifeless child.
"She immediately grabbed Caylee and began to cry. And cry. And cry," Baez continued. "And shortly thereafter, George began to yell at her, 'Look what you've done! Your mother will never forgive you and you will go to jail for child neglect for the rest of your frickin life.'"
Baez contended that Caylee's accidental death became one more ugly family secret... a secret just like George's alleged sexual abuse.
"Casey was raised to lie. ...she could be 13 years old, have her father's p_n_s in her mouth, and then go to school and play with the other kids as if nothing ever happened," Baez told the court.
Throughout Baez' accusations, George Anthony remained stoic. Later, on the witness stand, he would unequivocally deny the allegations against him....
Prosecutor Jeff Ashton : Have you ever sexually molested your daughter Casey Anthony?
George Anthony: No, sir.
"When you heard the accusations against George Anthony, did you think they were credible? Troy Roberts asked Forensic Psychologist Louis Schlesinger.
"Anything is possible. I don't think it was credible," he replied....
And he was accused of having an affair with a woman named Krystal Holloway.
Defense attorney Jose Baez: Did you at any time ever tell her not to say anything about your affair with her?
George Anthony Sir, I never had a romantic affair with Krystal Holloway.
And the defense put Holloway on the stand in their only attempt to prove Caylee's death was not a murder.
Krystal Holloway [River Cruz]: He also said "It was an accident that snowballed out of control."
Krystal Holloway takes the stand
Defense attorney Jose Baez: You never told her this was an accident that snowballed out of control?
George Anthony: (pauses) Never did.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/07/05/48hours/main20076969.shtml
related articles:
WENDY J. MURPHY: Casey Anthony trial an exercise in absurdity By Wendy J. Murphy GateHouse News Service
Jun 27, 2011 Recently dubbed the "Trial of the Century", the prosecution of Florida mom Casey Anthony for the murder of her toddler daughter, Caylee, could more aptly be called the Trial of the Absurd. The prosecution seems desperate to prove Anthony's innocence while the defense can't manage a single reference to the evidence that actually proves Casey did not kill her child.
Casey knows more than she's saying about who and why Caylee is dead, which is why she was offered immunity early on. The prosecution squeezed her very hard - even putting the death penalty on the table - but Casey resisted and the prosecution all but conceded defeat last week when they rested their case after presenting a woefully small pile of evidence.
....The prosecution's case raised more questions than it answered, and it failed address the following important issues:
....3. In May and June of 08, when Caylee was sleeping with Casey at a friend's apartment, Casey got a phone call in the middle of the night, in response to which, she roused Caylee from sleep and delivered her to some unknown location. Then she returned to her friend's apartment and went to sleep. Casey also delivered Caylee to unknown locations on other occasions when she claimed to be bringing Caylee to a "nanny." Where did she bring her? Why?
4. Why is the docket sheet in the case under seal? It would show what motions were filed to "seal" certain evidence. It would also show that the case has been designated a sex crime prosecution - which is important given that a sex crimes detective was involved in the early stages of the investigation. Why?
5. Casey searched the internet to learn how to make chloroform; a substance commonly used to sedate children in the making of child porn. The public thinks Casey used chloroform to kill her child, but the drug is popular among parents who pimp their kids because it's cheap and it causes amnesia so that victims can't remember being abused. Pimping kids is dangerous business and Casey apparently made someone very angry. Maybe she cut out an earlier "business" partner or ripped someone off. A "Zenaida Gonzales" reported her laptop stolen in early June.
The distortion of truth in this strange case will lead to Casey's acquittal, which begs the real question: will the prosecution then have the guts, and the political will, to file new charges against Casey for what she REALLY did to that poor little girl.
http://www.patriotledger.com/archive/x898079778/WENDY-J-MURPHY-Casey-Anthony-trial-an-exercise-in-absurdity
WENDY MURPHY: Why Casey Anthony will be acquitted GateHouse News Service Jun 09, 2011 There has never been a more reviled criminal defendant than Casey Anthony, the Florida mom on trial for murdering her nearly 3-year-old daughter, Caylee, in 2008. Casey behaved like a raving psychopath after her child went missing. She went out partying, didn't shed a tear, and got a tattoo that read "beautiful life."
Her lawyer claims she acted weird because she was sexually abused as a child. Maybe she was, which would help explain evidence uncovered during the murder investigation that showed Casey may have been working as a prostitute at the time Caylee was killed. Studies show that well over 90 percent of prostituted women were sexually abused as children. http://www.patriotledger.com/opinions/x1459481866/WENDY-MURPHY-Why-Casey-Anthony-will-be-acquitted
July 5, 2011
(CBS News) ORLANDO, Fla.
It began three years ago with a mystery that turned into an unthinkable crime. A community outraged, a family torn apart, and a nation's attention focused on one woman. After 91 witnesses and 30 days of testimony - stunning revelations, a family accused, disturbing evidence and even more disturbing behavior - finally a shocking verdict....
On July 5, 2011, Casey Anthony was acquitted of murder, acquitted of manslaughter and acquitted of child abuse.
She was convicted only of four misdemeanors: All of them about lying to investigators....
In his opening argument, attorney Baez said Casey had a reason to lie about Caylee's whereabouts. And for the first time in public, he revealed it.
"She never was missing. Caylee Anthony died on June 16, 2008, when she drowned in her family's swimming pool," Baez told the court in his opening statements.
That awful event, Baez said, overwhelmed this deeply disturbed young mother - a woman who had learned to keep secrets because she had been sexually abused by her own father from an early age.
"It all began when Casey was 8 years old and her father came into her room and began to touch her inappropriately. And it escalated. And it escalated," Baez continued....
Baez accused George Anthony of being the real villain in this case - a brutal man who intimidated his daughter for years. Baez told jurors that George found Caylee in the pool that day and then Casey found him holding the body of her lifeless child.
"She immediately grabbed Caylee and began to cry. And cry. And cry," Baez continued. "And shortly thereafter, George began to yell at her, 'Look what you've done! Your mother will never forgive you and you will go to jail for child neglect for the rest of your frickin life.'"
Baez contended that Caylee's accidental death became one more ugly family secret... a secret just like George's alleged sexual abuse.
"Casey was raised to lie. ...she could be 13 years old, have her father's p_n_s in her mouth, and then go to school and play with the other kids as if nothing ever happened," Baez told the court.
Throughout Baez' accusations, George Anthony remained stoic. Later, on the witness stand, he would unequivocally deny the allegations against him....
Prosecutor Jeff Ashton : Have you ever sexually molested your daughter Casey Anthony?
George Anthony: No, sir.
"When you heard the accusations against George Anthony, did you think they were credible? Troy Roberts asked Forensic Psychologist Louis Schlesinger.
"Anything is possible. I don't think it was credible," he replied....
And he was accused of having an affair with a woman named Krystal Holloway.
Defense attorney Jose Baez: Did you at any time ever tell her not to say anything about your affair with her?
George Anthony Sir, I never had a romantic affair with Krystal Holloway.
And the defense put Holloway on the stand in their only attempt to prove Caylee's death was not a murder.
Krystal Holloway [River Cruz]: He also said "It was an accident that snowballed out of control."
Krystal Holloway takes the stand
Defense attorney Jose Baez: You never told her this was an accident that snowballed out of control?
George Anthony: (pauses) Never did.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/07/05/48hours/main20076969.shtml
related articles:
WENDY J. MURPHY: Casey Anthony trial an exercise in absurdity By Wendy J. Murphy GateHouse News Service
Jun 27, 2011 Recently dubbed the "Trial of the Century", the prosecution of Florida mom Casey Anthony for the murder of her toddler daughter, Caylee, could more aptly be called the Trial of the Absurd. The prosecution seems desperate to prove Anthony's innocence while the defense can't manage a single reference to the evidence that actually proves Casey did not kill her child.
Casey knows more than she's saying about who and why Caylee is dead, which is why she was offered immunity early on. The prosecution squeezed her very hard - even putting the death penalty on the table - but Casey resisted and the prosecution all but conceded defeat last week when they rested their case after presenting a woefully small pile of evidence.
....The prosecution's case raised more questions than it answered, and it failed address the following important issues:
....3. In May and June of 08, when Caylee was sleeping with Casey at a friend's apartment, Casey got a phone call in the middle of the night, in response to which, she roused Caylee from sleep and delivered her to some unknown location. Then she returned to her friend's apartment and went to sleep. Casey also delivered Caylee to unknown locations on other occasions when she claimed to be bringing Caylee to a "nanny." Where did she bring her? Why?
4. Why is the docket sheet in the case under seal? It would show what motions were filed to "seal" certain evidence. It would also show that the case has been designated a sex crime prosecution - which is important given that a sex crimes detective was involved in the early stages of the investigation. Why?
5. Casey searched the internet to learn how to make chloroform; a substance commonly used to sedate children in the making of child porn. The public thinks Casey used chloroform to kill her child, but the drug is popular among parents who pimp their kids because it's cheap and it causes amnesia so that victims can't remember being abused. Pimping kids is dangerous business and Casey apparently made someone very angry. Maybe she cut out an earlier "business" partner or ripped someone off. A "Zenaida Gonzales" reported her laptop stolen in early June.
The distortion of truth in this strange case will lead to Casey's acquittal, which begs the real question: will the prosecution then have the guts, and the political will, to file new charges against Casey for what she REALLY did to that poor little girl.
http://www.patriotledger.com/archive/x898079778/WENDY-J-MURPHY-Casey-Anthony-trial-an-exercise-in-absurdity
WENDY MURPHY: Why Casey Anthony will be acquitted GateHouse News Service Jun 09, 2011 There has never been a more reviled criminal defendant than Casey Anthony, the Florida mom on trial for murdering her nearly 3-year-old daughter, Caylee, in 2008. Casey behaved like a raving psychopath after her child went missing. She went out partying, didn't shed a tear, and got a tattoo that read "beautiful life."
Her lawyer claims she acted weird because she was sexually abused as a child. Maybe she was, which would help explain evidence uncovered during the murder investigation that showed Casey may have been working as a prostitute at the time Caylee was killed. Studies show that well over 90 percent of prostituted women were sexually abused as children. http://www.patriotledger.com/opinions/x1459481866/WENDY-MURPHY-Why-Casey-Anthony-will-be-acquitted
Monday, July 4, 2011
Casey Anthony trial - Child Abuse Case?
WENDY J. MURPHY: Casey Anthony trial an exercise in absurdity
By Wendy J. Murphy GateHouse News Service
Jun 27, 2011
Recently dubbed the “Trial of the Century”, the prosecution of Florida mom Casey Anthony for the murder of her toddler daughter, Caylee, could more aptly be called the Trial of the Absurd. The prosecution seems desperate to prove Anthony’s innocence while the defense can’t manage a single reference to the evidence that actually proves Casey did not kill her child.
Casey knows more than she’s saying about who and why Caylee is dead, which is why she was offered immunity early on. The prosecution squeezed her very hard - even putting the death penalty on the table – but Casey resisted and the prosecution all but conceded defeat last week when they rested their case after presenting a woefully small pile of evidence.
....The prosecution’s case raised more questions than it answered, and it failed address the following important issues:
....3. In May and June of 08, when Caylee was sleeping with Casey at a friend’s apartment, Casey got a phone call in the middle of the night, in response to which, she roused Caylee from sleep and delivered her to some unknown location. Then she returned to her friend’s apartment and went to sleep. Casey also delivered Caylee to unknown locations on other occasions when she claimed to be bringing Caylee to a "nanny." Where did she bring her? Why?
4. Why is the docket sheet in the case under seal? It would show what motions were filed to “seal” certain evidence. It would also show that the case has been designated a sex crime prosecution – which is important given that a sex crimes detective was involved in the early stages of the investigation. Why?
5. Casey searched the internet to learn how to make chloroform; a substance commonly used to sedate children in the making of child porn. The public thinks Casey used chloroform to kill her child, but the drug is popular among parents who pimp their kids because it’s cheap and it causes amnesia so that victims can’t remember being abused.
Pimping kids is dangerous business and Casey apparently made someone very angry. Maybe she cut out an earlier “business” partner or ripped someone off. A “Zenaida Gonzales” reported her laptop stolen in early June.
The distortion of truth in this strange case will lead to Casey’s acquittal, which begs the real question: will the prosecution then have the guts, and the political will, to file new charges against Casey for what she REALLY did to that poor little girl.
http://www.patriotledger.com/archive/x898079778/WENDY-J-MURPHY-Casey-Anthony-trial-an-exercise-in-absurdity
WENDY MURPHY: Why Casey Anthony will be acquitted
GateHouse News Service
Jun 09, 2011
There has never been a more reviled criminal defendant than Casey Anthony, the Florida mom on trial for murdering her nearly 3-year-old daughter, Caylee, in 2008. Casey behaved like a raving psychopath after her child went missing. She went out partying, didn’t shed a tear, and got a tattoo that read “beautiful life.”
Her lawyer claims she acted weird because she was sexually abused as a child.
Maybe she was, which would help explain evidence uncovered during the murder investigation that showed Casey may have been working as a prostitute at the time Caylee was killed. Studies show that well over 90 percent of prostituted women were sexually abused as children.
http://www.patriotledger.com/opinions/x1459481866/WENDY-MURPHY-Why-Casey-Anthony-will-be-acquitted
By Wendy J. Murphy GateHouse News Service
Jun 27, 2011
Recently dubbed the “Trial of the Century”, the prosecution of Florida mom Casey Anthony for the murder of her toddler daughter, Caylee, could more aptly be called the Trial of the Absurd. The prosecution seems desperate to prove Anthony’s innocence while the defense can’t manage a single reference to the evidence that actually proves Casey did not kill her child.
Casey knows more than she’s saying about who and why Caylee is dead, which is why she was offered immunity early on. The prosecution squeezed her very hard - even putting the death penalty on the table – but Casey resisted and the prosecution all but conceded defeat last week when they rested their case after presenting a woefully small pile of evidence.
....The prosecution’s case raised more questions than it answered, and it failed address the following important issues:
....3. In May and June of 08, when Caylee was sleeping with Casey at a friend’s apartment, Casey got a phone call in the middle of the night, in response to which, she roused Caylee from sleep and delivered her to some unknown location. Then she returned to her friend’s apartment and went to sleep. Casey also delivered Caylee to unknown locations on other occasions when she claimed to be bringing Caylee to a "nanny." Where did she bring her? Why?
4. Why is the docket sheet in the case under seal? It would show what motions were filed to “seal” certain evidence. It would also show that the case has been designated a sex crime prosecution – which is important given that a sex crimes detective was involved in the early stages of the investigation. Why?
5. Casey searched the internet to learn how to make chloroform; a substance commonly used to sedate children in the making of child porn. The public thinks Casey used chloroform to kill her child, but the drug is popular among parents who pimp their kids because it’s cheap and it causes amnesia so that victims can’t remember being abused.
Pimping kids is dangerous business and Casey apparently made someone very angry. Maybe she cut out an earlier “business” partner or ripped someone off. A “Zenaida Gonzales” reported her laptop stolen in early June.
The distortion of truth in this strange case will lead to Casey’s acquittal, which begs the real question: will the prosecution then have the guts, and the political will, to file new charges against Casey for what she REALLY did to that poor little girl.
http://www.patriotledger.com/archive/x898079778/WENDY-J-MURPHY-Casey-Anthony-trial-an-exercise-in-absurdity
WENDY MURPHY: Why Casey Anthony will be acquitted
GateHouse News Service
Jun 09, 2011
There has never been a more reviled criminal defendant than Casey Anthony, the Florida mom on trial for murdering her nearly 3-year-old daughter, Caylee, in 2008. Casey behaved like a raving psychopath after her child went missing. She went out partying, didn’t shed a tear, and got a tattoo that read “beautiful life.”
Her lawyer claims she acted weird because she was sexually abused as a child.
Maybe she was, which would help explain evidence uncovered during the murder investigation that showed Casey may have been working as a prostitute at the time Caylee was killed. Studies show that well over 90 percent of prostituted women were sexually abused as children.
http://www.patriotledger.com/opinions/x1459481866/WENDY-MURPHY-Why-Casey-Anthony-will-be-acquitted
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Effects of sexual abuse last for decades, study finds
Effects of sexual abuse last for decades, study finds
Levels of so-called stress hormone are altered for years, sometimes causing physical and mental problems, researchers find
By Joan Raymond msnbc.com contributor
6/30/2011
Young girls who are the victims of sexual abuse experience physical, biological and behavioral problems that can persist for decades after, a new study shows.
Researchers, who tracked a group of girls ranging in age from 6 to 16 at the start of the study in 1987 for the next 23 years, found that they had higher rates of depression and obesity, as well as problems with regulation of brain chemicals, among other issues, compared to a control group of girls who were not abused.
The study, published in the Cambridge University Press journal Development and Psychopathology, was conducted by researchers from the University of Southern California and the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Those in the study were assessed by researchers six times at varying ages and developmental stages. Researchers hope to continue the study looking at the women, who are now in their 30s, as well as their children.
The racially-diverse group of 80 girls, who lived in the Washington, D.C., area, were victims of incest, broadly defined as suffering sexual abuse by a male living within the home. On average, the girls were abused for about two years prior to the abuse coming to the attention of child protective services. Some girls were abused when they were as young as age 2.
Compared to a non-abused control group, the researchers found the study participants, all of whom were provided three therapy sessions on average in group and individual settings, suffered severe effects during different stages of their lives, which affected their sexual and cognitive development, mental and physical health, as well as their brain chemical profile. Study participants were more likely to be sexually active at younger ages, have lower educational status, and have more mental health problems.
As children, they had higher levels of cortisol, the so-called "stress hormone," which is released in high levels during the body’s "fight or flight" response. But by about age 15, testing showed that cortisol levels were below normal, compared to the control group. Lower levels of cortisol have been linked to a decrease in the body’s ability to deal with stress, as well as problems with depression and obesity. Lower levels of the hormone have also been linked to post-traumatic stress disorder.
“The cortisol levels (of some study participants) wound up looking like Vietnam vets,” says study co-author Dr. Frank Putnam, professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. “That tells us they are in a chronic state of stress, and never feel safe.”
....The long-term effects of the abuse “were absolutely profound,” says lead author and child psychologist Penelope Trickett, USC professor of Social Work. “It’s just not mental health issues. Some of these women are suffering from a lot of problems today like sleep issues, poor health utilization, and have a lot of risky behaviors. It’s very disturbing.”
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43594639/ns/health-health_care/
Levels of so-called stress hormone are altered for years, sometimes causing physical and mental problems, researchers find
By Joan Raymond msnbc.com contributor
6/30/2011
Young girls who are the victims of sexual abuse experience physical, biological and behavioral problems that can persist for decades after, a new study shows.
Researchers, who tracked a group of girls ranging in age from 6 to 16 at the start of the study in 1987 for the next 23 years, found that they had higher rates of depression and obesity, as well as problems with regulation of brain chemicals, among other issues, compared to a control group of girls who were not abused.
The study, published in the Cambridge University Press journal Development and Psychopathology, was conducted by researchers from the University of Southern California and the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. Those in the study were assessed by researchers six times at varying ages and developmental stages. Researchers hope to continue the study looking at the women, who are now in their 30s, as well as their children.
The racially-diverse group of 80 girls, who lived in the Washington, D.C., area, were victims of incest, broadly defined as suffering sexual abuse by a male living within the home. On average, the girls were abused for about two years prior to the abuse coming to the attention of child protective services. Some girls were abused when they were as young as age 2.
Compared to a non-abused control group, the researchers found the study participants, all of whom were provided three therapy sessions on average in group and individual settings, suffered severe effects during different stages of their lives, which affected their sexual and cognitive development, mental and physical health, as well as their brain chemical profile. Study participants were more likely to be sexually active at younger ages, have lower educational status, and have more mental health problems.
As children, they had higher levels of cortisol, the so-called "stress hormone," which is released in high levels during the body’s "fight or flight" response. But by about age 15, testing showed that cortisol levels were below normal, compared to the control group. Lower levels of cortisol have been linked to a decrease in the body’s ability to deal with stress, as well as problems with depression and obesity. Lower levels of the hormone have also been linked to post-traumatic stress disorder.
“The cortisol levels (of some study participants) wound up looking like Vietnam vets,” says study co-author Dr. Frank Putnam, professor of pediatrics and psychiatry at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. “That tells us they are in a chronic state of stress, and never feel safe.”
....The long-term effects of the abuse “were absolutely profound,” says lead author and child psychologist Penelope Trickett, USC professor of Social Work. “It’s just not mental health issues. Some of these women are suffering from a lot of problems today like sleep issues, poor health utilization, and have a lot of risky behaviors. It’s very disturbing.”
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/43594639/ns/health-health_care/
Sugar Ray Leonard - sexual abuse, U.S. Army major accused of sexual abuse
also: Army Doctor Turns Down Promotion
day care child abuse case - West Point Child Development Center
For Sugar Ray Leonard, memoir is therapy By Shemar Woods July 2, 2011
On some days, Michael Arkush’s interviews with Sugar Ray Leonard would last from 9 a.m. into the night. Other days, the boxing great would tell Arkush to stop the recorder, his mood darkened by the retelling of a troubled past. But in small doses over 18 months, Leonard began to open up about a career full of highs and lows. The result was “The Big Fight: My Life In and Out of the Ring,” a book co-authored by Leonard and Arkush that was released June 6....
The book’s most disturbing revelation - that Leonard was sexually abused by a boxing coach and another man while a young amateur fighter in the 1970s - came to light over months of conversations between Arkush and Leonard. Leonard, who said that he didn’t intend for the scene to make the book, initially revealed only a few details. Only after watching actor Todd Bridges explain how he was sexually abused on “Oprah” did Leonard begin to fully open up about the harrowing details of the abuse.
“It was clear the experience was very cathartic for him and liberating,” Arkush said. “It was difficult at times, of course. But you could could see how much satisfaction he got from just coming to terms with everything”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/boxing-mma/for-sugar-ray-leonard-memoir-surved-as-therapy/2011/07/01/AGoQyhvH_story.html
U.S. Army major accused of raping an infant
By: Freeman Klopott Crime Reporter 05/21/10
A U.S. Army major who had 30,000 images and 100 videos of child pornography on his computers now faces rape and sodomy charges in Arlington for allegedly raping an infant.
Daniel A. Woolverton faces up to 30 years in prison when he's sentenced in Alexandria's federal court on Friday. Among the videos found on his computers in his Arlington home were images of Woolverton having sex with a 2- to 3-month-old baby, court documents said. After his sentencing, he'll head to Arlington County's Circuit Court to face the rape and sodomy charges.
Woolverton pleaded guilty to possessing the child pornography in January. Before an FBI agent linked Woolverton to images downloaded from Woolverton's computer through a peer-to-peer file sharing network, the major's career as an Army trial lawyer was on the fast track.
http://washingtonexaminer.com/local/crime-and-punishment/us-army-major-accused-raping-infant
Army Doctor Turns Down Promotion
By Kathy Sawyer Washington Post Staff Writer
The Washington Post Jun 25, 1985
ProQuest Historical Newspapers The Washington Post (1877 - 1994) pg. A6
An Army doctor rejected promotion to major at a public ceremony yesterday because, he said, officials have failed to respond adequately to charges that his daughter, 3, and other children were sexually abused at the day care center at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.
Capt. Walter R. Grote, 33, told a gathering at a promotion ceremony at Fort Dix, N.J., "I cannot accept promotion in a system that at first refused to acknowledge and now refuses to deal with the victims of extensive child abuse that occurred at the West Point Child Development Center."....
A federal grand jury has been hearing the allegations that 11 children, from ages 13 months to 3 1/2, were sexually or physically abused at a facility near the Academy athletic field.
One suspect was transferred to administrative duties with the post division that oversees the day care center, Yeagley said. The other has left the Academy work force.
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